TJT Certified Public Accountants

Calculating the Value of an Employer Provided Vehicle

Many employers provide a vehicle to employees for their use during working hours.  However, that employee may also use that vehicle for personal use before and after business hours.  An employee’s use of an employer-provided vehicle for business purposes is a working condition fringe benefit that is excluded from the employee’s income if properly substantiated. The balance of the vehicle’s use (to the extent not reimbursed by the employee) is a taxable fringe benefit to the employee.  Usually in this instance, the only actual cost to the employee is the tax that they have to pay on the value of that fringe benefit.  The caluculation of that value can be done using one of three rules:  (1) the vehicle cents-per-mile rule, (2) the automobile lease valuation rule, and (3) the commuting valuation rule.  The maximum value of employer-provided vehicles first made available to employees for personal use in 2013 has a cents-per-mile valuation rule of $16,000 for a passenger automobile and $17,000 for a truck or van. The maximum value of employer-provided vehicles first made available to employees for personal use in 2013 for which the fleet-average valuation rule may be applicable is $21,200 for a passenger automobile and $22,300 for a truck or van.  If you need assistance calculating the fringe benefit fo an employer-provided vehicle, please contact our office.